


That Damn Xmas Fic

by call_for_help



Category: Longmire (TV)
Genre: Because this is a Hallmark movie, Crack Treated Seriously, F/M, First Meetings, Getting Together, Hallmark Christmas Movie AU, OOC, Tumblr made me do it, accepting plane rides from handsome strangers like its normal, and no cursing, in which Martha is alive and Cady is a lawyer in New York, schmoop city
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:27:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28182378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/call_for_help/pseuds/call_for_help
Summary: A cancelled flight is set to keep Cady from getting home by Christmas before a handsome stranger steps in to help. Will she be able to convince him it's not such a bad holiday after all?
Relationships: Cady Longmire/Jacob Nighthorse
Comments: 13
Kudos: 12
Collections: Longmire Holiday Exchange





	That Damn Xmas Fic

**Author's Note:**

  * For [What_a_mess (Myself)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myself/gifts).



> The prompt for this was “Write me a ~~fuckin’~~ Jady Hallmark movie,” and I have to believe I’ve achieved that. You have been warned.

Cady sighs with relief, finally past security and on her way to her gate with plenty of time to pick up an eggnog latte. Drink in hand, she strides through the packed airport, past tinsel clad columns and garbage cans wrapped in colorful lights. 

The sound of her favorite Christmas song playing over the speakers makes her look up and her mouth falls open slightly at the sight of the man strolling past. He has kind, dark eyes and cheekbones she would die for set in a tanned face framed by dark hair that is trimmed on the sides and sticks up stylishly on top, and a grey beard, the only hint that he must be at least a decade older than she would otherwise guess.

His dark jeans are way too tight and his maroon shawl neck sweater and charcoal wool coat do him no disservice either. The coat is just a bit longer than she would prefer, she notes, as she can’t help turning to watch him a little longer after he passes. 

She takes a sip of her latte to refocus but misses a step and almost stumbles. If her cheeks weren’t already warm from racing through the crowded hallways in a heavy navy sweater, they would be reddening presently. She doesn’t dare look back to check if he had, by chance, seen her trip.

She makes it to her gate without further incident just in time to see all the screens turn red, white letters spelling “CANCELLED,” followed by irrelevant details. 

A sort of disappointed calm washes over her and she automatically takes out her phone.

“Cady? Is everything alright?” Martha answers. She can hear Walt and Henry bickering in the background, probably about how to best dress the tree or something. She smiles at the thought; they always wait until the last day to decorate.

“Not exactly. The flight got cancelled and the next one, which is probably already full, isn’t for a few hours.”

“Oh, Honeybee, that’s really too bad. We were so hoping you’d make it to the party.” She hears a muffled, “A little to the left,” before Martha evidently moves out of range of the problematic pair. “Did Dad tell you the theme? Henry came up with it.”

“Absaroka Merry Little Christmas, yes I heard. And promptly threw up.”

Someone taps her shoulder and she turns around to find the attractive stranger and barely stops herself from dropping her phone.

“Excuse me.”

“Hold on mom.” She covers the bottom of her phone and tries to appear neutral to his intrusion. “Yes?”

“I couldn’t help overhearing, you’re from Absaroka? I was supposed to be on the Denver flight that just got cancelled as well. But I have a connection who just agreed to loan me her plane. It seats two if you’re interested.”

“Um, wow, that’d be great.” Did she really just say that? No pause, no thought, no anything? Was it the kind eyes or the tight jeans? _Focus, Cady._ She wipes what was surely a look of mild shock off her face and manages to compose herself just a bit. “Can you just, give me a moment?” 

“Of course,” he says, stepping back toward a bench with a navy and silver suitcase resting by it. 

“Hey, Mom? I think I found a ride. I, uh, might even make the party now, if we don’t have to stop in Denver.” 

“That’s wonderful,” Martha responds, just a trace of a question in her voice but she doesn’t ask. They say their goodbyes and Cady wanders over to the man on the bench.

He looks up. “So. Did you check any bags?” he asks, standing back up.

“Nope, just this.” She raises her duffel bag. “But, I didn’t catch your name…”

“Jacob Nighthorse,” he says, smirking slightly. “It’s good to finally meet you Cady.” 

Now her mouth really falls open and his smirk grows to naughty elf proportions. “I’ve been in the sheriff’s office enough to recognize you from the pictures on Walt’s desk. You don’t think I go around offering rides to every beautiful, lost-looking stranger I come across, do you?” 

“I’m sure I wouldn’t know.” He starts walking off and she has to rush a few steps to catch up. “What was that first part?”

He glances over at her for just half a second as they walk quickly. “Lost-looking?”

“Huh.” She gives him a sidelong glance but he doesn’t notice. “So you’re the one building the casino? I’ve heard a thing or two about _that_.”

“Good things, I hope?” he asks with a smirk. This must be his signature facial expression. 

She chuckles, more at her observation than his comment. “Not exactly. But I think my parents are coming around on the idea.”

“Wouldn’t that just be a Christmas miracle.”

She actually laughs at this and his smile gets just a little more real. 

* * *

Wind cuts through her open jacket as they walk across the asphalt towards a tiny plane. Jacob stows their luggage then reaches a gloved hand down to help Cady into the cabin.

She pulls the door closed and for the first time that day she sits in silence. It would come as a relief from all the hustle and bustle except for the man sitting next to her unintentionally, through his mere presence, making her feel like the seconds of quiet have been more like hours.

Luckily for her, he spares them extended awkwardness by starting the engine and the cabin is filled with a pleasant hum.

They take off and she gets a sense of leaving, not only the ground, but also the grind, the days that all feel the same, and fully surrenders to the adventure of flying across the country with a man she just met.

She’d seen the city from above often enough, but, looking out the window, this is something different and so much more spectacular. The city is covered, not with clouds, but fog, sitting low enough that some of the taller buildings peek through the still sea of backlit cotton candy. The weather conditions are probably frustrating many tourists, but she’s never seen the city look so beautiful. She smiles out the window and settles in as the plane levels off.

“So, do you have big plans for Christmas? It seems a little late to be traveling on business.”

“Not really. I’m heading back now because I’ll be the only one trying to get any work done for the next week. I’ll be back sometime in January.” 

She can’t help the hopeful excitement that forces a reluctant smile to her lips. It quickly drops to a slight frown.

“Do you not have family to spend time with?”

“Also not really.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. Still, isn’t it nice to take a break once in a while?”

“I’m sure I wouldn’t know,” he says, echoing her earlier comment with a knowing look. “Relaxing isn’t really my style.”

“You can take time off without relaxing you know.”

He considers this for a moment, squinting slightly. “It’s been so long, I don’t think I’d know what to do with myself.”

“How about this: schedule an extra day when you come back in January and _I’ll_ teach you,” she offers.

He glances over, a touch of good humor in his eyes. “I might just have to take you up on that.”

Warmth sneaks into her cheeks at the prospect and she falls silent, already pondering what they’d do, where she could take him. 

Jacob picks up the conversation and points it in an entirely different direction, pulling her out of her thoughts.

“How’s your work going? Walt says you’re a lawyer.”

She gapes at him just a bit. “He just slips that into casual conversation now? He hasn’t always been so supportive.”

“He likes to assure me of his sound understanding of the law. When I have, on just a few occasions, questioned it.”

“Right, but what does my being a lawyer have to do with him?”

“I guess you’d have to ask him that,” he quipped. “I used to dabble in law myself, you know.”

“How do you ‘dabble’ in law?”

He shrugs. “It didn’t take. But now I can catch that many more people trying to screw me over, so not a total loss.”

“I would say, ‘How cynical, surely the world isn’t out to get you,’ but…”

He actually turns toward her now, his eyes fixing her with a fond gaze. “Hopefully not the whole world.”

At that moment, a slight gust shakes the plane and Cady naturally reaches out to grab Jacob’s arm. The plane stabilizes after a second but she doesn’t take her hand away. When she looks up at him, he’s looking at her hand but he soon returns her gaze. His dark eyes flick down to her lips and her heart rate increases as she leans towards him, almost involuntarily. Inches away, and the plane shudders again and Cady practically jumps out of her skin and jerks away but only grips his toned forearm tighter. 

He has the decency to look almost as embarrassed as she feels. “Maybe I should focus on staying in the sky long enough to get us home.”

Cady releases her grip and clasps her hands in her lap. “Yeah, yep, good plan.”

* * *

  
They get out of the plane and it's flurrying. Even though it was snowing when they left New York, seeing the blanketed Wyoming landscape refreshes her sense of wonder and she wanders a few feet before twirling around, losing herself in the moment. She snaps out of it when he clears his throat, luggage in hand. “One winter wonderland to another,” she says with a grin.

He huffs. “I’d rather be sipping coca by a fire… just a car ride away.” He points toward the waiting vehicle, lightly dusted with snow and starts heading toward it, calling over his shoulder, “I’ve had more than enough snow for the year, to be honest.”

“Is that so?” She bends over and forms a snowball then tosses it at his retreating form. It disintegrates against the back of his jacket and he freezes mid-step. 

He turns around and she can’t tell if he’s actually annoyed or not. He drops the suitcases and starts to bend down, slowly, holding eye contact, and she takes the opportunity to scramble behind the plane, imperfect shield as it is. They exchange fire for a few minutes and she can’t remember the last time she laughed so hard. 

He finally turns to resume walking to the car and she considers leaving it there but the opportunity is too good to pass up. She grabs one last handful of snow and stalks after him before clapping him on the back of the neck, sending him squirming to keep the cold from falling into his jacket. 

“Hey. Do you want a ride? Or would you rather the opportunity to walk home through this white crap you seem to love so much?”

She can’t quite suppress a smile. “Only if your Grinch-mobile has seat warmers.”

He opens the passenger door and his voice makes it sound like he’s issuing a challenge when he says, “You’ll have to get in to find out.”

She never was one to back down from a challenge. He joins her and they start driving toward town. He groans when she turns the radio to holiday music and hovers his finger over a button when she starts singing along.

“Don’t make me turn it off.”

“Oh, c’mon.”

“There are exactly three Christmas songs I don’t object to. This isn’t one of them.”

“Are you always such a Scrooge McDuck?”

He gives her a quick glance before droning, “Ho ho ho, humbug.”

A laugh escapes her before she has time to consider whether he is joking or not. A hand reaches across and squeezes hers in silent reassurance. She twists her wrist so their palms are touching and squeezes back.

“Your hand is freezing,” he comments.

“We _were_ just playing in the snow,” she says defensively and pulls against his grip only to have her hand gripped tighter.

“I’ll keep it warm, if you’d like?” he offers and she relaxes, letting his hand warm hers, as she warms to the idea of the man attached to it being more than just a pretty face.

“Are you always this contrary?”

“Stick around a while and maybe you’ll find out.”

* * *

  
They pull up the gravel driveway and there are more cars out front than she’s ever seen. They must be packed like sardines inside the tiny cabin. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about being cold anymore. 

She unbuckles her seat-belt and turns to him. “Come inside? I know you don’t have anywhere else to be and I promise Dad will be good. He might not even notice you, it looks like all of Absaroka’s inside.”

“Cady…”

“Please,” she drags the word out and, gosh darn it, she wouldn’t normally stoop this low but she really doesn’t want to wait until January to see him again and, knowing Martha, there’s a good possibility a sprig of mistletoe made its way up to at least one doorway. 

“If you insist.” 

They make it through the door undetected and Jacob moves away immediately to her disappointment. He claps a hand on Branch’s shoulder who turns and fixes Jacob with an impassive glare before cracking up and shaking his hand good-naturedly. He seems to introduce him to a dark-haired man she hasn’t seen before. He’s wearing a ghastly Christmas-tree-covered Hawaiian shirt and… shoes that appear to be a strange, no doubt custom, cross between winter boots and sandals. He looks perfectly excited to meet Jacob. 

She shakes her head and looks for Henry and her parents. Walt is the first one she finds and they exchange greetings after he thoroughly crushes her in a hug. 

As they chat, she glances around the room. It’s mostly sheriff department staff, Martha’s co-workers, a few family friends. Really, the guy with Branch and Jacob is the only one she doesn’t recognize.

“Uh, Dad, who’s that?” she asks, pointing discreetly.

“Oh, that’s Vic’s friend. Or, Vic brought him anyway.”

“Huh.” 

Next she finds Martha and Henry adding the finishing touches to cookie trees and sheriff badges in the kitchen. Henry smiles but Martha positively lights up with joy and almost rivals Walt’s bone crushing hug until Henry interferes. 

“Martha please, let the poor girl breathe. She is already running on low oxygen compared to New York.”

“Speaking of,” Martha chimes in, “How did you end up getting here so soon?”

“Oh, that. It’s a funny story actually.” She runs a hand through her hair nervously. “Jacob Nighthorse overheard me talking about Absaroka and, well, it turns out he’s a pilot.”

Martha gapes a bit but it’s Henry who says, “You came here with Jacob? Oh, Walt will love this. Is he here somewhere?”

“Last I checked he was talking to Vic’s mystery friend. But please don’t stir up trouble Henry. He’s coming around on the casino, right?”

“He got over that a while ago. But then Jacob threw his weight behind the mayor that Walt does not approve of. Two steps forward, one step back.”

“Oh, Henry,” Martha scolds. “He’ll be good, Honeybee. Why don’t you go get some eggnog? Henry made it.”

“Homemade? See you later.”

She doesn’t spot Jacob as she wades through the crowd to the refreshment table.

Once there she ladles a large serving out of the thirty-something year old punch bowl, and grates some nutmeg that Henry must have left there over her drink, thinking of all the gatherings she’d seen this bowl at, and the ones that came before she could remember, or was even around for.

“Cady Longmire,” came an amused drawl from her right that startles her out of her reminiscing. It’s Hawaiian shirt guy.

“I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve met?”

“They call me Joe-Mega. But that’s a story for another time. I hear you’re the guest of honor, coming home to Ab-snow-roka for the holidays?” He says it with just enough of a slur that by the time she catches the intended pun she’s already formed her reply.

“I wouldn’t put it that way but, I suppose.” She takes a sip and, like all of his cooking, Henry’s eggnog is darn good.

“Can I tell you a secret?”

“Uh…” Now that she’s tasted the eggnog, she wonders if the ‘Mega’ could stand for ‘Mega-drunk.’

He leans in conspiratorially anyway. “That guy, Jacob, he keeps staring at you when you’re not looking. I _think_ he _likes_ you.” He nods knowingly as if he just deduced the true location of Ansel Hamilton’s treasure. “He’s been hovering over there by the mistletoe for a while now, why don’t ya go”—he makes a kissy face, and she hopes she’s the only one that hears the accompanying sounds—“Dude clearly isn’t gonna make a move.”

“That’s, um, some good advice. You know, _my_ advice would be to give the water a try. Sink’s in the kitchen.”

He looks skeptical but wanders off anyway and she dares to look over at the door frame he must’ve been referring to. _Crap._ He is over there, in fact he’s the only one over there, leaning against the wall and seeming to be taking in the scene before him. This is exactly what she wanted but she’s suddenly nervous, butterflies in her stomach and a fog in her head. She takes another long sip of eggnog before setting it down and making her way over to him. 

“Enjoying the party?”

He looks up and smiles. “As much as I can. I said hello to half the people I know and I’m currently avoiding the other half.”

She laughs and a bit of her nervousness falls away. “That’s probably a good idea. This might not be the best place to do that though.”

His eyebrows lower in what she can’t decide is mock or genuine confusion. “And why’s that?”

Her heart rate stubbornly increases and she swallows as her eyes find the top of the doorway beside him. She reaches for his hand and tugs him toward her until they’re framed by the doorway.

She cups his bearded cheek with her other hand. “Because, I wouldn’t want someone else to do this.” 

She draws his face towards her and their lips meet gently in what is, for all appearances’ sake, not much more than a chaste kiss, but the teasingly light pressure feels to her more like the restrained connection of someone not wishing to get carried away in such a public place. Judging by the alternating push-pull pressure of his hand on her neck, her suspicions are correct. As their lips meet longingly a couple more times they almost seem to say, _“Later,”_ and she’s a little glad they can’t do anything more at the moment as she finds herself running out of oxygen from more than just the altitude.

When they pull apart, her eyes are still closed when she hears Vic’s voice from close-by. “Oh holy….. night.” 

“That about sums it up,” she mumbles before the rest of the party din forces its way into her consciousness and she realizes that Vic’s talking about them. Her eyes shoot open and she surveys the room but thankfully the only other person looking at them is that Joe-Mega guy who gives her a big thumbs-up. 

* * *

  
Not long after their kiss a few people start filtering out and she walks Jacob to his car.

“Are you getting in?” he asks. “You’re more than welcome to.”

“I… should probably stay.” She silently curses the words coming out of her mouth but she’d rather not let her parents, well, mostly Walt, on to her interest in Jacob quite so soon. “But I’d really like to see you again before January.”

“I’m sure that can be arranged,” he replies smoothly with a twinkle in his eye. “And, hey, whenever you head back, I can fly you out.”

She smiles at the ground, tracing lines with her boot through the snow. “You might need a bigger plane.”

“What for?”

“Coming home today… I don’t know, I think I’d rather get lost in the stars than the city lights.” She steps closer to where he’s leaning against the car and draws her hands up behind his neck, taking him in up close in the moonlight.

“I’d rather get lost in your eyes.”

She doesn’t bother agreeing with words but starts kissing him again, faster, deeper than before. His hands on her hips pull her flush against him and she’s seriously considering abandoning her family to spend the night with him.

“Cady?” calls Walt from the porch. “Who’s that?”

From inside she hears Martha coming to her rescue, “Oh Walt, leave her alone for heaven’s sake.”

It must have worked because they have no more interruptions but she has to tear herself away.

“Tomorrow?” she asks breathlessly.

“Tomorrow.” He kisses her once more before reluctantly strolling towards the driver’s side. “Cady? Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For showing me there may be some magic in this holiday after all.”

**Author's Note:**

> For anyone who doesn't know, A Martinez was in a Hallmark movie playing a grumpy rancher named Brick McCree. I would not recommend the movie, despite not having seen it, but I would recommend the three seconds of the trailer starting [here](https://youtu.be/DdDp9EQPm8g?t=85).
> 
> I also make reference to a delightful video about a suitcase that can be found [here](https://youtu.be/29gqSFSS2Mo).


End file.
